Prisoner Suspected Of Having Ebola Virus Escapes From Ugandan Hospital

One of five inmates from the Kibaale district prison at the centre of a recent Ugandan outbreak escaped early Friday morning, CNN reports.While results of the prisoner’s test for Ebola virus are yet to be determined, the symptoms point towards a positive result. And that has people worried.

“Should his results come back and he is positive, that causes us a lot of worry,” said Dr. Jackson Amune, commissioner at the Ministry of Health in an interview with CNN. “So right now, we have resolved that the remaining prisoners will be cuffed on the beds for fear that they might also escape.”

The latest outbreak (there have been four in Uganda since 2000) reportedly started after a 3-month-old girl died after contracting the disease. Of the 65 people who attended her funeral, 15 later contracted the disease, reports the AP.

Currently, the source of the virus has never been determined and neither has a cure. Treatment for those infected is merely supportive therapy, constituting “balancing the patient’s fluids and electrolytes, maintaining their oxygen status and blood pressure, and treating them for any complicating infections”, according to the CDC.

While figures for the fatality rate of those infected vary, some strains kill up to 90% of infected persons, reports the New York Times.